2013 Reading Resolutions

Happy New Year! It’s that time of year again. Where I make an intention (aka goal) for my reading for 2013.

This year I’m aiming for 100 books again. I ended 2012 with 80 books, so not bad. Last year I didn’t make a concentrated effort to read during the first couple of months and fell behind. Not so this year! I hope to sneak in at least 10-15 minutes a day reading. I want to create a bedtime routine so I’ll sleep better (and earlier) so I want to including reading in bed as part of it.

I’m using GoodReads again to keep track of my books. Again, I’m not including books that I read to my kids, unless it’s a book I would read on my own as well. I think once my daughter starts reading longer chapter books there will be some overlap.

Instead of just focusing on the number of books I want to read this year, I hope to focus on specific types of books as well:

Read more “literature” type books. The ones that receive award nominations and critical acclaim. I thought I’d start with Junot Diaz because I’ve seen his name a lot these days. On Twitter, Emily recommended that I start with The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. Next time I head to the library, I’ll grab a copy.

Read more Asian-American and Asian-Canadian writers. As an Asian-American, I want to learn more about other Asian-Americans’ experiences living in the United States. How are they similar to my experiences as a first-generation versus someone whose family has been in the US much longer? I will probably avoid those that sound like coming of age experiences. I’m all ears for any recommendations.

Do more “popcorn” reading. By popcorn reading, I mean formula fictions like cozy mysteries, thrillers and maybe even some chick lit.

I think that’s about all I can manage. I read a wide variety of genres and don’t want to limit myself. It’s nice to take a break from serious literature for some popcorn reading and vice versa.

What about you? What reading resolutions are you making? If you wrote about it on your blog, please leave a link in the comments.